Reply to Does your elementary school use the "stoplight"/shame system

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Reply to "Does your elementary school use the "stoplight"/shame system"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]I'm a teacher in Virginia and use the "stop light" system. Why, because I don't have time to sit there and have a discussion with your child Everytime he decides to play around and not follow directions.[/b] Especially if I have already outlined my expectations and given both verbal and written directions. My students know why they are changing their color and they are able to move their color back if their behavior improves. However, once they teach red they will be joining me in an instant phone home. I don't have time to teach 30 kids and also deal with the fact that your kid has not stopped talking the past 5 times I asked them.

Now I say all that but let me say that I give my students plenty of advanced warnings, have clear guidelines for behavior and expectations and keep my kids engaged all day. I give them downtime when I notice that they need a break and only make them change their colors when I've exhausted all other means (a warning, a quick check in with them and then a discussion). But if your child is being a little disrespectful snot then by all means, expect to hear from us. [/quote]

But it sounds like that's what you're already doing. My child went to a school that did a clip chart with the colors and it stressed him out. In three years he was on yellow twice and the good colors all the other days, but he was so worried about moving his clip that it made him hate school. His friends were on the "bad colors" all the time, so he worried the teachers would have him move his clip too. I told him to quit worrying about it, but it was no use.

The past two years we've been at a school that uses responsive classroom and he's much happier. It's rare that I hear him talking about his friends being in trouble, so I guess it's working ok. My ds is kind of shy and quiet, so he never got in trouble for anything except not following instructions before, but with the responsive classroom it seems the expectations are pretty clear? [/quote]

Yes, the clip system can do that to kids.  That's why positive reinforcement in place first is so important.  Planning for the behavior ahead of time removes many of the situations that involve reacting without thought.  The clip system is a punishment system, unfortunately.  There is a book by Murray Sidman called Coercion and its Fallout.  There is good discussion about the negative effects of punishment and it also addresses how kids HATE school among other things.  I have two kids who LOVE to learn.  They quickly learned to hate school with the punishment systems they have in place.  My 1st grader started peeing her pants and both of my kids are very nervous at school.  This has lasting effects and they are afraid to approach their teachers for fear of being yelled at or called out.  It has been a nightmare for me  being a parent of children who do not have behavior issues. Such guilt that I can't homeschool with people who share our similar values and want to promote a LOVE of learning rather than scaring kids into good behavior.  Teacher and administrator education should strongly focus on behavior so that the people who are with our kids all day are educated on best practices. [/quote]

Wow pp that is heartbreaking. I've seen my fair share of bad teachers who are just flat out MEAN and CRUEL to the children and then a few who are kind and loving. I've gone back to school so that I can become a teacher and it's because I love working with kids, not so I can bully them.

But do you know who I frequently see the worst behavior from? The instructional aides. They are often the least patient, have the shortest tempers, and have NO IDEA how to interact with children appropriately. They are quick to punish and have no idea how negatively it affects the children. The schools should be looking more closely at the people they hire for these jobs. The difference is that they don't even require them to have any college education at all. So they haven't been required to study child development and child psychology and how to teach things like math and reading.[/quote]

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